Ni Festivalu 2006!

Centenary celebrations are very much in the air at the moment - it was in the middle of the first decade of the last century that many of the national Esperanto associations were established, that the first truly international Esperanto gathering took place, and that the first original Esperanto play was written.

With this in mind participants at the January 'Ni festivalu' weekend (broadly: 'Let's celebrate!') spent their time - mostly - studying early Esperanto dramas written by a Catalan writer, Frederic Pujula I Valles. But it wasn't all study. Colin Simmonds, who 'stars' in the
DVD of the first original Esperanto play (filmed last year at Barlaston), led a lively practical session including improvisation and other techniques used in the training of actors.

Next year's 'Ni Festivalu' weekend - at any rate the theatrical side of it - will follow a similar format. In so doing the weekend provides a valuable opportunity for serious and advanced Esperanto speakers to immerse themselves in the language as well as explore their culture.

PPG

Pictured are, from left, Helen Fantom, Colin Simmonds and Norwegian visitor Bard Hekland, with Denis Galitsyn in the background, improvising a scene involving two people in a car who pick up a hitch-hiker.

In another improvisation, Sally Phillips conducts an 'orchestra' comprising Bard Hekland and Kate Hall playing 'instruments' expressing emotions such as happiness, sadness and curiosity.